Undying Love
by TheHeartStealer
Summary: What do you think would happen when Phantom, the master thief, had his role switched with Aria, the Empress of Ereve? Total chaos, a little bit of humor and -of course- romance. AU storyline where Aria is the master thief and Phantom is Emperor of Ereve. AriaxPhantom
1. Chapter 1- A Thief's Joy

**Author's Note: Rewritten chapter one_  
_**

* * *

**Aria**

This was probably her greatest heist yet. Time and time again, she had that habit of outdoing herself - but now? _Now _she's done it. Not only did she easily infiltrate the Ariant palace, but she did so on a very special day. When security was the tightest and and when crowds gathered either to cheer on or for the free food - she specifically picked today because it was the Queen's birthday.

Aria quietly paced onward, taking note that there wasn't a guard in sight. They were probably all outside, preventing anyone from getting in. The crowds were, at an event as large as this, quite crazy since the Queen had allowed commoners into the inner walls of the palace. The people had always hated the Queen, and Aria had felt the same. The only difference is that they couldn't even come within five feet of the Queen's throne room - she could. Stopping at one of the many hallways within the palace, she scanned her surroundings. The palace had always awed Aria. With its majestic designs, huge walls and Arabian-styled columns, she smiled as her mind seemed wholly taken up with reminiscences of past experiences. She was fond of this place for a number of reasons - one of them being the first place that she'd ransacked.

Aria was looking for something though. She had a mission to do. Now that she was here, she might as well ransack the whole place again, something that she'd already done in the past or - or she could take something that everybody would remember her for. Doing a quick review of today's activities, didn't she hear about all the kings and queens, celebrities and those-who-are-famous being invited to the event? What if, let's say, she took the thing that was most dear to the Queen on her very own birthday. A thought passed through Aria's head as she grinned crazily. What if she took her birthday presents? Snatching it right in front of everyone for all to see and then proclaiming the Queen's birthday as the master thief's grocery shopping day? Yes, now _that_ would be spectacular.

As if on cue, several guards seemed to walk towards Aria's direction. Hearing their footsteps, she ran towards the nearest column, nimbly climbing up to hide herself away from view. Peeking at them, she wondered why two guards - one thin and scrawny, the other big and burly - were still lurking in the palace. Did they notice her presence or were they just slacking off from work? Aria had to know. Thankfully, the two guards hadn't even notice that a girl was currently spying on them from on top of a column. They passed by Aria, chattering about something that Aria couldn't quite make out. Carefully taking out her cane, she ambushed both the guards, not taking more than a few seconds to knock the big guard out cold with a whack from her cane. Turning to look at the thin one, she lashed her arm out at him, grabbing him by the collar and pointing her cane at the base of his neck.

"Now then, I'd like to know why the both of you aren't doing your duty by standing outside to guard the palace?" Aria asked. "Or has the guards of Ariant became so good that they don't need each and every guard member to help?"

The guard stared wild-eyed at Aria. "N-No," he stuttered. "The Queen had asked for two men to aid in protecting her," he gasped. "We were just following orders. Please don't kill me."

Aria smiled softly. "Why would I kill someone who I've never even met."

At that, she loosened her grip, whacking him with her cane. The guard crumpled onto the ground, unconscious. Aria had a plan now. She dragged them both behind a column, and then proceeded to strip the scrawny guard's clothes off, only leaving his undergarments intact (She would NEVER touch undergarments that don't belong to her). Sighing, she put on the guard's uniform, taking off her hat and tucking it into her left pocket. She couldn't lose the hat, it was way too important. Turning to look at the larger guard, she took his turban from him and proceeded to cover her face with it. She wanted no one to recognize her until the end of her master plan. She had to admit, though, the uniform was slightly too loose for her. "_This'll have to do_," she thought.

Casting aside her worries, she continued on, eventually arriving at the Queen's royal chambers. Adjusting her clothes, she knocked on the door. "The guard you had ordered for has arrived, my Queen."

"It was about time you insolent idiots arrived!" The Queen screamed. "Am I not paying all of you enough to the point where you delay yourselves on this very special day of mine?" She said as she opened the door.

If Aria were given the choice to pick the winner of the most-angriest-expression-a-person-could-make contest, the Queen of Ariant would probably be called the Queen of Anger by then. Staring at her with the most piercing eyes and pained expression, she scanned Aria from head to toe. "_You_ are going to be my protector? _You _who is wearing a uniform that is slightly too loose for your own good? _You_ who has better skin complexion than _me__!?_"

Aria stared completely poker-faced. At least she didn't recognize her. The first phase of her master plan had worked. Though truthfully, she really wanted to just run back to the Lumiere and tell Renault to leave immediately and never come back. It was one thing to see the Queen from afar but it was a completely different experience all together to see the Queen up close. Sure she was beautiful, to say the least - she was completely covered in gold robes, had jewelry covering almost every part of her body and wore a crazy amount of make up. But what got Aria's attention was the Queen's hat. It looked so... so stupid. Aria's own hat was about a hundred times more better looking than the Queen's.

"My apologies," Aria started. "But every guard is busy trying to protect you from the dangers of the crowds. They could just _barely_ work with one less guard around."

"I ordered _two _guards, didn't I?" The Queen snapped back. "Where is the other one?"

"Please understand tha-"

"No! You understand that I ordered _two_ guards to begin with. Now where is the other one?"

Aria was completely speechless. She wanted to punch the Queen in the face. Sure she asked for two guards on her special day but if one guard couldn't come - or got knocked out - did she have to make so much of a fuss about it?

"Um well, the commanding officer said that the Queen would only need one guard to escort her because each and every other guard will protect the Queen with their life from outside the palace," Aria answered.

"They would?" The Queen asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes! Before a threat could even become a threat, the guards would already be there to put a stop to it."

The Queen started to smile. "Hmm yes, now that is pleasing to hear."

The Queen walked pass Aria, gesturing her and a couple other servants to trail after her.

* * *

After a considerable amount of distance, they had finally arrived at the entrance of the palace. As the Queen walked out of the palace gates, the crowds cheered on. Though the sun was shining brightly, and it was usually super hot around these parts. Aria had felt unusually cool. She attributed it to magicians, who were probably cooling the area through some kind of magic. Aria also noticed a group of people sitting on classy chairs with palm shades over their heads and servants tending to them. She figured that they were probably the famous guys who were invited. There was also a huge, well-built stage - where the Queen was heading towards.

As the Queen climbed up the few steps leading to the stage, the crowd cheered on and gave her a standing ovation. Aria didn't know the people loved her. She always thought they hated her. After a moment of thinking, she deduced that the the guards were probably threatening to harm their families if they didn't do this. That or the people were just being paid. The Queen strode around the stage with her arms raised triumphantly, exulting in the worship.

"I thank every one of you for being here today. It means so much to me when I see my people here cheering. And who could forget the nobles who came today to celebrate with me," she said as she pointed at the group. And the crowds cheered on, signaling the start of the celebration.

Aria managed to sneak away from the servants and the Queen. She waited patiently for the right time to make an amazing entrance. She wanted her plan to be perfect. After a few more speeches, the party began. With everyone dancing about, eating and singing, Aria chose to avoid the crowds, intent on keeping a low profile. It proved much more easier than she had expected, with the band of musicians blaring their music all around and everyone getting drunk on wine.

She found a good spot to stand, right under a shady tree. Waiting patiently, it went on for hours. Even after that, there were the greetings with the nobles. Aria had nearly fallen asleep while standing. Her feet were aching. And then finally, the present ceremony had began. Aria immediately set into action, getting closer to the Queen. The nobles were all lined up on stage, each giving the Queen a present as well as a handshake. Aria noticed that all the presents were jewelry. Of course, the Queen of Ariant just _loves_ jewelry - everybody knows that. Personally though, as a girl, Aria too had taken a liking to it.

After receiving a piece of jewelry, the Queen would place it all on a beautiful table next to her. Aria figured that she should get to there first. Nimbly slipping through the crowds and guards, she managed to end up behind the stage, where all the servants stood by watching.

"And I finally thank Emperor Phantom of Ereve for this wonderful sapphire brooch. Emperor Phantom, everyone!"

The crowd clapped and cheered as the blonde guy, maybe slightly older than Aria, turned to leave the stage. Something about that guy had piqued her interest though. Aria couldn't help but gaze into his amethyst colored eyes. For a moment, Phantom turned to look at her, raising his eyebrows. Aria broke away, turning to look elsewhere. It was finally time, she couldn't afford to get distracted.

Reaching into her front shirt pocket, she slowly took out a card, caressing it gently before taking her aim. Expertly throwing it at the direction of the table, the card pierced its corner, causing a distinctive "thump" sound to be heard. This got the Queen's attention - as well as everyone else's. Immediately after that, the palm of her hand grew hot, shining brightly until a gold dagger-shaped object was formed. In turn, her other palm formed some sort of grenade. Not giving anyone a chance to react, she lobbed the grenade, making it land right in the middle of the stage. Instantly, the whole stage was filled with smoke. The Queen screamed as all hell broke loose.

Everywhere there was screaming. Guards were swarming around to the Queen's aid and servants were running amok, blinded by the smoke screen that had started stinging their eyes. Aria ran towards the table, dodging the running servants and attacking guards. In a frenzy, she frantically picked up all the jewelry - placing them into a sack - as the smoke had started to clear. By the time the smoke had cleared up, she was standing on the table, with _everybody_ staring at her.

For at least five seconds, nobody said anything. They all just stared at her. Then the Queen bellowed.

"My _personal_ guard!?" The Queen screamed. "A lowly guard _dares_ betray me?"

"Wait. What?" Aria muttered. Everyone was supposed to be in awe at the sight of the master thief. Where's the screaming? The recognition? Some one should be yelling, "It's the master thief!". Instead she was called a _lowly guard_. And then she realized what she was wearing. Aria shuddered. She wanted to scream. She always knew she was bad at remembering things but forgetting to change back into her master thief outfit was on a whole new level. And among all the days she could mess up in, she just _had_ to mess up on _this_ specific day. Gaston's definitely going to want to hear this one.

"No! Wait, everyone I'm not a guard," Aria protested. A couple of confused chattering could be heard from within the crowd. "Just one moment please."

At that, Aria quickly stripped off the guard uniform, taking off her turban, revealing her long blonde hair and pale skin complexion. Again she heard a couple of even more confused chattering. Without the guard uniform though, everyone started to realize just who she was. Calmly taking her hat out, she put it on, confirming everyone's suspicion. Smiling, Aria waved. Then everything started happening at the same time. The guards charged at her. The servants wailed. The crowd gasped. The nobles stood up, waving their hands in anger. And one cried out, "It's the master thief Aria!"

"Indeed it is, good sir!" Aria exclaimed excitedly as she took out a card. Just seconds before the guards could even _touch_ her. Aria vanished, a cloud of cards surrounding her before disappearing, leaving no traces of her behind but the very first card that she threw - still attached to the table where the jewelry used to be. And everyone knew why she left it there.

After all, the card bears the insignia of Aria herself, the master thief.

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't own Maplestory or its characters, Nexon does.**


	2. Chapter 2- The Not-So-Safe World

**Author's Note: Rewritten chapter two**

* * *

**Phantom**

Phantom sighed. Another stack of paper work done for today. Setting aside his quill and ink set, he promptly rose from his desk, rubbing his temples. Turning towards his balcony, he stood right behind the ten-foot-tall glass door - the only thing separating him from the outside - and gazed out at the night sky. He admired the small dots of brightness that covered the dark blanket made of hues of blues and blacks. The stars, Phantom had always thought, looked way better when it surrounded the moon. A full moon tonight, it was like a ghostly-silver orb in the sky. Its beams spilled across the landscape like lines of glittering fire. It was an alluring scene. Almost impossible to miss. Phantom had always dreamt of being able to fly up there, freely enjoying the scenery. He kept wondering how it felt to be that close to the moon.

There was a sudden knock on the door, startling Phantom, followed by a familiar voice that Phantom had gotten to know quite well - low-pitched and resonant. "May I come in, Your Highness?" the voice called out.

"Y-yeah Neinheart, you may," Phantom stuttered, slowly backing away from the balcony.

The doors opened gently, revealing a tall man with long light blue colored hair and fair skin. He wore a monocle on his left eye and was wearing his usual robes, white cloth at the neck with different shades of blue for the body.

"Dinner's ready," Neinheart announced. "We wouldn't want anyone to starve by staying here any longer now, would we?"

Phantom chuckled. He knew that none of his council members - the people Phantom trusted most - could eat when he's not present. It was sort of like a rule they made up.

"Alright. Let's go."

* * *

"You should have seen the look on her face, Neinheart!" Phantom started to laugh. A few days ago, while attending the birthday celebration of the most infuriating queen that Phantom had ever met, a thief that went by the name of Aria had stolen the royal gifts from right in front of her. He couldn't believe how easy it was for her to just do it. After the smoke - that had apparently came out of nowhere - finally cleared up, the master thief stood on top of the table, which was by then quite empty, and while holding a sack in one hand, she held a card on the other. Waving playfully at the people, she vanished. Just like that. Leaving the guards of Ariant completely dumbfounded and their Queen bellowing in rage.

"I take that it was really that funny since Your Highness is still laughing this hard even _after_ several days," Neinheart replied, waving his long, light blue hair. Adjusting his monocle, he raised an eyebrow. "But didn't she take _your_ gift as well? Don't you know that I had put extra precaution in choosing that gift for the Queen of Ariant and this so-called _thief_ just...just snatches it away?"

"Oh stop being so sour, Neinheart. You didn't like the Queen either did you?" Phantom snapped back.

Neinheart pursed his lips. "All those hours I put into to find the perfect gift...wasted."

Both the men were walking towards the royal dining hall, where the rest of the council members had already gathered. Glancing at his watch, Phantom knew that he was late. Not that he really cared though.

"But it was _that_ funny. The way everybody just stood in silence after the thief had vanished was epic!" Phantom went on. Phantom didn't want to admit it, but he had really wanted to extend his stay in Ariant. Doing a little shopping and vacationing and maybe - just maybe, try and find out a little bit more about this so-called master thief. Instead, he was immediately deported back to Ereve, with Neinheart ultimately being the culprit behind it. And his reason? The usual: _It's for your own safety, Your Highness._

Come to think of it, Phantom wondered how Neinheart had managed to get that kind of information anyway. Sure he was Phantom's personal tactician and all, but to know and grasp the situation that effectively and that quickly. Phantom had to give the tactician some credit.

Upon arriving at the entrance of the dining hall, Phantom could already feel the same nostalgic feeling that had always greeted the young emperor whenever he saw the two huge doors made out of gold. They were really old though, having been there for generations. Neinheart had mentioned once about replacing them, though Phantom immediately disapproved. He loved those doors - too many memories engrave into it.

Now standing just in front of it, Phantom gazed at the emblem of Ereve, both doors having it carved into them. Pushing the doors inward, he breathed in the sweet smell of the forest. It had always smelled that way. The huge circular room was illuminated by the orange glows of the castle lamps.

But the real eye-catcher was the huge dome that acted as a roof. Engraved into the dome were pictures depicting Ereve warriors battling ancient enemies. Phantom frowned while trying to remember who they were. He could only picture one word: _Sharenian. _Other than that, the Ereve warriors were pointing their swords at their necks, implying that they had probably won. At the center of the floor was a grand glass dining table. Each corner of the walls had marble columns supporting them. Each had wonderful designs of forests and lakes. And every council member had a seat, with their chair designed according to their element. Phantom's seat was the gold one though, huge and majestic - symbolizing his status as the Emperor of Ereve.

Casually walking in, the emperor greeted the council merrily, the way he usually does when meeting old friends. "Good evening, everyone!"

The five council members stood up, promptly bowed, before taking their seat. In unison, they greeted back.

"Now, let us begin," Neinheart announced. "Let's have dinner."

Immediately, the servants came rushing in. With a platter on each hand, they set it down on the table, taking the cover off to reveal all kinds of Ereve delicacies. Everyone smiled at the sight of the food.

"So," Phantom started as usual, "how was everyone's day?" He said as he ate.

"Boring!" The girl with shoulder-length, auburn hair called out. Her ruby colored eyes rolled at once, looking at Neinheart with distaste. Phantom noted that she was always wearing that same knee-length red robes - something that made him curious enough to consider asking. Phantom wondered if she had matching sets or whether she used some kind of magic to keep it clean. Or if she didn't bother changing it at all, and had always been using the same outfit. But Phantom was no expert in magic, and Oz was probably the most feistiest girl that he'd ever got to know. She was pretty _alright _when it came to normal things but when agitated, Phantom would expect a minimum of two to five fireballs coming his way if he had said something stupid. So he figured that he should just keep it to himself. It was the better option after all. And it was better for his health too.

"Oz! Don't talk like that while you eat!" Neinheart chided.

Oz leaned back, resting her chin on her palm. "I can't help it if today was boring. There was absolutely _nothing_ to do! I should've gone to Ariant with Emperor Phantom."

"If you did, then you would've probably gotten something stolen by that pesky thief..." Neinheart replied.

Oz's eyes lit up, as if she was reminded of that incident again. "Yeah! I want to hear about how the Queen of Ariant got her birthday presents stolen!"

"It was hilarious!" Phantom joined in.

"I should've been there..." Oz frowned.

"No! There shall be no more _discussions_ concerning that incident," Neinheart exclaimed.

"HA! You're just mad 'cause the thief stole that present you took so long to choose."

"It wasn't that long..."

"You nearly fainted from exhaus-"

"I said enough of this nonsense, didn't I!?"

Phantom yawned. Neinheart was probably the most boring person he had ever met. In fact, out of all the crazy and weird people that the young emperor had made contact with, Neinheart was the only relatively normal person. Always being "_by the book_", Phantom wondered how Neinheart could still look so young, despite always worrying for everyone else. This, however, had only spurred on his respect for him. Phantom had long admitted that his tactician was one of the people he respected the most. Without him, Phantom wasn't sure if he'd even be able to run the kingdom properly for a day. His first royal decree - without Neinheart's supervision - would probably be "_Phantom day"_ everyday.

"Okay. Okay. Now you all heard Neinheart. Let's forget about the Ariant incident and talk about something else." Phantom told everyone. "Mihile! How about you?"

The blonde haired man with muscular features smiled. He was manly. _Very_ manly to be exact. He was always dressed in full armor, with his helmet on and stuff. Apparently, his code of conduct was: _You must always be prepared for surprise attacks. Always. _Phantom didn't quite understand why or how his code came to be, but the other council members? They _loved _picking on him despite his rank, authority and manliness. To them, ambushing poor Mihile while he's in the shower and pelting him with water balloons, with everyone yelling "_Banzai!_" was kind of like a favorite sport. Despite all this though, they could never dampen his bright spirit.

"In addition to their usual missions, I've ordered my warriors to lower any troubles found within the kingdom, Emperor Phantom. Other than that, there's really nothing to report. All's peaceful here." Mihile answered.

With a smirk, the guy with dark-hair - who's equally covered in dark clothing - turned to look at him. "Not if a half-naked man who's blinded with soap screams for his life while running around town."

Everyone chuckled. Though not so much with Mihile.

"Eckhart!" Mihile bellowed. "If I remembered correctly, weren't you the only one who cried from watching _The Titanic_?"

"Shut up!" Eckhart snapped back. Quickly putting on that mask of his, Phantom could tell he was blushing from embarrassment since he obviously used that mask to hide his unwanted emotions. That guy was sensitive after all.

"That movie was _beautiful. _I wouldn't expect a knucklehead like you to understand," Eckhart snapped at Mihile.

"Yeah. Sure. It was beautiful and all but couldn't the girl save both herself and her boyfriend? I mean, they could've just took turns on that piece of driftwood or something right?"

"I told you to shut it! Don't ruin the beauty of that movie!"

"Okay!" Phantom intervened, trying to lower the amount of tension between them both. "Well, how about you Hawkeye? Got anything to say?"

The muscular, tanned man grinned. He had his usual navy outfit on, with his over-sized captain's hat included. "Well, there really isn't _anything_ that's harming anything out there. But-" He paused. Looking to his left, then to his right, he leaned in closer, urging everyone else to do the same. "Being a pirate and all, I _did _hear a few things that didn't seem like good news. News bad enough, it even terrifies my pirates-"

"The rise of the Black Mage," interrupted the council member with golden eyes as she suddenly perked up. Her long emerald green hair seemed to shimmer from the orange glows that were illuminating the room.

"You just _had_ to ruin the fair amount of drama I put into when it was _my_ turn to speak, didn't you?" Hawkeye protested.

Phantom turned his attention towards her. "Irena? You've heard of this as well?"

"Oh, it's just a small rumor, nothing big." Irena replied.

"Oh yeah. Sure. Some dude with enough power to take over all of Maple world is _nothing big_." Hawkeye said, imitating Irena's voice.

Irena rolled her eyeballs. "Oh, grow up Hawkeye! You're practically our...what's the word again..." Irena mused.

"Number one idiot!" Oz pitched in.

"Yeah! You're our number one idiot! Do you really believe in such a rumor?" Irena questioned.

"Firstly, Oz, you stay out of this. And secondly, what if it was all true?" Hawkeye made a face. "The people from the free markets were crazy when they heard about it."

"_You _went crazy when you heard the rumor that Kyrin came back," Eckhart spoke up.

Hawkeye's eyes widened. "What the heck, man! Don't remind me of her! And don't remind me of that rumor. S-She never did came back..."

"Aw, is little Hawkeye gonna cry about it?" Irena taunted.  
"Not unless I make you cry first," Hawkeye snapped back.  
"You want your mouth full of my arrows?"  
"You want your face full of my punches?"

"Okay. Stop right there you two." Phantom demanded. Phantom was well aware of the rivalry that both of them shared. It could really go on for days if he was careless and didn't stop it in time.

"Why'd you stop them Emperor Phantom?" Oz asked, waving her hands at him. "You just ruined the show!"

"Yeah! I love watching them fight." Eckhart agreed. "It could go on for _days_ if left unchecked."

"Oh, shut up Eckhart," Mihile remarked.

"Why don't you shut up?" Eckhart replied.

Neinheart sighed. "Why don't you all just shut up?"

"Let's get back to the real topic," Phantom started. "Who is this guy again? That has enough power to take over the Maple World?"

"He's called the Black Mage," Irena said, still glaring at Hawkeye. "For all we know, he might not even be real."

Phantom raised an eyebrow as he played with the peas on his plate. "But that's what everyone's saying right?"

"Well, yeah, that's what everyone's talking about these days." Irena replied.

"But for a man who is _rumored _to pose such a threat, his name is pretty stupid don't you think?" Neinheart said casually, as he drank from his cup.

"Yeah, couldn't he have chosen a more cooler name?" Mihile agreed. "As in a _real_ name."

"Enough of this talk already!" Irena exclaimed. "This _Black Mage_ or whatever does not exist. There won't be a-"

"He does exist," Hawkeye interrupted. "It's just my gut feeling, but I trust it. He _does_ exist. How else would you explain all the weird things that were happening lately?"

"The monsters that were going crazy and an increase in crime rate? Maybe Hawkeye's right. Maybe the Black Mage does exist," Oz agreed.

Irena rolled her eyes. "Let's not _be_ those crazy monsters here, people. The monsters and the increase in crime rate are just a coincidence. I guarantee that the Black Mage does not exist."

At that moment, the doors to the royal dining hall burst open. An ape-like creature with wings, dressed in a suit of armor, came running in. "I'm so sorry to interrupt your dinner, Your Majesty," He gasped.

Everyone turned to look at him. "Kidan?" Phantom started. "Is there a problem?"

"Victoria Island," Kidan said, catching his breath, "Ellinia, more specifically, is under attack!"

Immediately, everyone rose from the table. "Who is the enemy?" Phantom asked.

Kidan frowned, looking up as if trying to remember. "I'm not sure, but on that distress letter that we received. A person was mentioned. The Black Mage."

Phantom shuddered. Was it true? He had to get to the bottom of this. Immediately, Phantom turned to look at his tactician. With only a glance, Neinheart understood everything and hurried off with Kidan to gather reports and keep the situation under control. Swiftly, Phantom turned to look at Mihile, and then Oz. "Lead a squad of your warriors and magicians as reinforcements to counter the attack immediately. Find out whoever this enemy is and be sure to keep a lookout for one of Neinheart's messengers. He'll be contacting the both of you once he's on to something."

"Understood!" They both cry out in unison.

"And the rest of you - to your posts - now!" Phantom ordered as he turned to leave the royal dining room, with everyone else following suit.

Turning to look at Irena, Hawkeye grinned crazily.

"What?"

"He does exist."


	3. Chapter 3- To Steal

******Author's Note: Rewritten chapter three**

* * *

**Aria**

After raiding a library full of crazy magicians, Aria didn't think her night could get any worse. She was wrong.

She hadn't found any kind of secret door leading to treasures or anything. In fact, she hadn't found _anything_ precious in Ellinia's so-called _"Magic Library"_: just a few wandering fairies, a dozing security guard and - when she tried checking out a magically locked room - a whole group of _not-too-friendly _magicians. How was she supposed to know that when a room was locked, it was locked for a reason.

Renault - who was the whole reason why Aria had bothered coming here in the first place - said that a secret door or something was supposedly built within the confines of the library, holding unimaginable treasure. The idea that Aria could find it? Yeah, that pretty much failed. Before Aria could even manage to take her card out and whisk away to safety, some buffoon sealed her, preventing her from using any skills. Somewhere at the back of her mind, she could practically feel Gaston's laughter, taunting her as if saying: _I told you so Master Aria, y__ou should've brought an All Cure Potion. _Thus, it lead to her having to have to fight her way out - with just her cane and her miraculous ability to dodge - through twenty or more scholars of "magic".

Then - as crazy as it might seem - just as she was about to make her great escape, the whole library seemed to implode, causing the front entrance to collapse, blasting Aria out in the process. Completely flabbergasted, Aria looked around to find herself caught right in the middle of a war zone. On one side were the magicians and fairies, who were blasting beams of energy, while on the other - deserving the grand prize for the most weirdest thing Aria had seen tonight - was what seemed to be a whole army of _skeletons._

But wait! There was more! Aria was _still_ under the "seal effect", meaning she couldn't teleport back to the Lumiere and was trapped in the crossfire between the living and the dead. Apparently, whoever sealed her was an expert at it. Of course, Aria ran for her life. Again relying on her cane and miraculous ability to dodge - Aria had just realized tonight that she was _really _good at dodging - she managed to climb up a tree that barely hid her away from view.

Now, as those who-were-still-alive had started to retreat, Aria nearly had the heart attack of her lifetime when she noticed that the magicians were retreating towards the opposite end of where Aria was, leaving her stuck up on that stupid tree - still sealed - with about a hundred of those undead creatures below her. And that's when those knights showed up, completely taking away the spotlight. They fought as if there was no tomorrow. Aria figured that the muscular blonde dude - the one screaming out orders - and the girl dressed with the red hoodie-plus-robe-combo, who was fighting by his side, were probably their commanders or something. Doing a quick re-calculation on the best way to survive this unfortunate predicament, she decided that sticking with them was probably the most safest place in this crazy town. Jumping down from the tree, she ran towards them until she was in sight, then she promptly fell to the ground, holding her knee while feigning injury. Immediately, knights came rushing to her aid, lifting her up and hastily carrying her back to the camp that they had just finished setting up.

Aria was brought to a big tent, with the commanders waiting inside. Up close, they looked tired, sweaty and all too bloody. The girl with the red robes came closer to her, inspecting her from head to toe. "You are neither a magician, fairy or one of the undead. State your purpose her!" she demanded as she lifted her staff, pointing it at Aria's face.

"Calm down Oz, she's injured," the muscular man said, looking genuinely worried.

Oz turned to look at him. "Injured? She's feigning it obviously. Mihile, I'm sure you can tell that she's suffered no kinds of fatal wounds. She's just covered in scrapes."

Mihile sighed. "All right, then she might just be a traveller, there's no need to interrogate her."

"That's right," Aria said, a little too loud. "I-I'm just a traveller. I was at the library when it imploded all of a sudden, then I found myself caught in the middle of a war," Aria paused to catch her breath, "I ran towards this camp when I saw people but I accidentally tripped on my way here."

Oz looked at her warily, as if she had wanted to say a few more things but a knight had suddenly burst into the tent, screaming, "We've found their leader and she's charging into Ellinia right now - bringing the undead along with her!"

Mihile did not waste any time unsheathing his sword. He ran out of the tent with Oz trailing after him, leaving Aria alone.

Aria looked around as she sat down, exhausted from her earlier experiences. Besides the table and chair that she was sitting on, the tent was pretty much empty, with only a map showing the layout of Ellinia taped on a side. Reaching into her coat pocket, she fished out a red velvet card. Feeling its soft texture, she brought it closer to her lips, whispering _"To The Skies" _and hoped for the best. Nothing happened. Aria groaned. Who was this magician that was so proficient in sealing anyway?

All of a sudden, another knight came bursting into the tent, startling Aria. He looked around frantically, finally resting his eyes on her. "Where is Mihile, Chief of the Dawn Warriors?"

Aria stared back, trying to look as normal as possible. "He just left, is there something you need?"

"Of course there's something I need. I need to look for the Chief! Neinheart has a letter for him. He might have figured out why Ellinia is under attack," the knight answered.

"Oh really? Why is Ellinia under attack anyway?"

"Something about a treasure that's hidden here- Wait, I'm not supposed to talk about about this! Where did the Chief go!?"

Aria's ears perked up when she heard that word. _Treasure__. _She had to find out more. Looks like Renault was right after all.

Aria gazed intently into the knights brown eyes. "Oh, well you know, I _am_ the Chief's most trusted advisor. I'll take it from here. I'll deliver the message for him."

"Advisor?" The knight questioned. "But I never heard the Chief having an advisor before..."

Aria laughed lightly, before slowly frowning. "A mere knight dares to question his Chief's advisor?"

Aria deliberately got up, pacing closer towards the knight. She really hoped this would work; though if it doesn't, Aria could always rely on trusty 'Plan B' - knocking the poor sap out. "There is a war going on outside and here you are questioning _me_?"

The knight staggered backwards a little, before standing upright again - recomposing himself. "My apologies, advisor," he said, clearing his throat. "I have a letter for the Chief that you must deliver." The knight quickly handed the letter over to Aria, not looking at her in the eye. Perhaps her plan worked a little too well.

"I'd be glad to. You may leave now."

The knight gave Aria a salute, before turning to leave. When the coast was clear, she stared delightedly at the plain creamy colored letter, stamped with a weird emblem in the middle. Aria ignored that. She fiddled around with it a little before trying to tear it open. No luck, it was enchanted.

The letter would turn into a rubbery-like object that stretched upon being pulled. Aria cursed. Looks like the only way to open it was to deliver it to Mihile himself. And when _he_ opens it, all Aria has to do is swipe it away. Feeling a little bit more sure of herself, Aria realized that the "seal effect" had already worn off by now. Stuffing the letter into her usual coat pocket and tipping her hat slightly to the left, Aria ran out of the tent - keeping her eyes peeled for the undead army's "_leader_"

Running deeper into Ellinia, Aria realized just how dire the situation was. The town was in flames, trees were all over the place and the one thing Aria can't stand the most? Everywhere, Aria could see corpses lying around. Looking up, she saw several fairies being chased by what looked like zombies. The fairies ran as fast as they could towards a tree, magically disappearing into it and leaving the zombies petrified, probably wondering how that was even possible.

Then an explosion shook the ground. Aria could tell that it was nearby. Heading towards the direction of it, she can't help but notice how barren the town was. Except for the group of skeletons that were aimlessly walking around - which Aria had easily avoided now that she wasn't sealed - there were no signs of life.

Still heading towards the direction of the explosion, Aria had finally arrived at a clearing. The first thing Aria noticed was a magician lying on the ground, apparently injured but trying to heal. He looked really old - with a long white beard and such. Aria wasn't sure though, since his face was shielded from vision by the large white hat and matching white robe that he wore. The next thing Aria noticed were the two figures surrounded by a group of armored skeletons who looked completely different - more bigger with better armor - and were carrying huge spears. Aria recognize the two figures as Mihile and Oz, with the former slightly leaning onto Oz as if needing her for support to stand. They were heavily wounded.

Aria's attention was then pulled towards the person standing before the two Chiefs. Perfect posture, sharp golden eyes and long red hair, she was breathtaking to look at. One thing that got Aria thinking was her age though. Aria couldn't tell how old she was. She looked youthful, that's for sure, but she didn't give off that youthful feeling. It was a pity that she didn't seem like the type who'd sit around and have a nice chat over a cup of tea. It was already certain to Aria that this - this _sorceress _was the person who caused the attack. And the one who killed thousands of lives.

At once, Aria sprang into action. Almost instantaneously, she appeared right beside Mihile. Twirling her whole body, she willed her cards to appear before her, making them twirl with her. Vigorously, they then expanded into a tornado of cards, knocking back and breaking the skeletons into pieces. Turning to look at the beauty, Aria threw one card with great force, missing her head and hitting her shoulder instead. Blood flowed out like a waterfall, and then abruptly stopped, astonishing Aria.

The woman looked at Aria, fairly surprised, while wiping off blood from the golden silk dress she wore. She squared her shoulders as she fixed her gaze onto the master thief. "And who do we have here? A child who likes to play with cards?"

"You should try it sometimes. It's much safer than playing with the dead," Aria snapped back.

The woman smiled softly. "Well I must say, playing safe is no fun is it? Besides, the dead speak to me. I already know who you are, thief."

"Apparently, I haven't heard about you at all," Aria admitted. "Isn't it proper etiquette for someone to introduce themselves first before knowing who the other is?"

The woman laughed lightly."My, aren't you being fussy. Fine. I am Hilla, Chief Shamaness of Azwan, Sorceress of the Dead. It is a pleasure meeting you, the master thief."

Aria arched her eyebrows. "You know nothing about me-"

"And _you_ know nothing about _me_," the sorceress interrupted her. "Tell me, what business do you have here?"

Aria glared at Hilla. "You don't need to know. And besides, Azwan doesn't even exist. Do you really expect me to believe you?"

Hilla cocked her head slightly, blinking rapidly. "I'm so sick of you fools who think that Azwan is just a myth. Of course it is real. I'm sure your friend Grendel here would agree with me," Hilla said, pointing at the injured mage who - trying his best to stand - was watching everything from afar. He wheezed heavily as he clutched his chest hard.

Aria faltered in astonishment. She had practically lived her whole childhood in the Nihal Desert, always believing that Azwan was never real. A mirage. A myth. Now? Some Shamaness of Azwan claims it to actually exist.

Hilla smirked. "Why so surprised? Those two Ereve Chiefs didn't even care when I told them the news. Though, they were much more _active _just a moment ago. Until my minions wore them down, that is."

"Coward!" Oz yelled. "You only forced the dead to fight us. How would you fare against one of us? Without summoning those skeletons? Do you think you can still win?"

"Can I win?" Hilla asked sarcastically. "I'd gain more than just winning. Both of you would already be a part of my undead army if I weren't holding back."

Oz's face turned as white as paper. Aria suspected that Oz knew she couldn't win. She was trying to hold down a wave of panic and terror.

"Then why did you hold back?" Aria asked, trying to soothe Oz's nerves. "If you claim that you're so powerful, why did you hold back?"

Hilla scoffed. "I don't need to answer to a thief. However, I believe you have something you're supposed to give, perhaps?"

Aria felt for the letter in her coat pocket. She had almost forgotten about it but Aria was much more perplexed at the fact that Hilla knew about it. If the dead really do talk to her, then maybe - just maybe - that knight who'd given her the letter had probably been killed? Aria shuddered at that thought. Taking it out, she handed it to Mihile.

"A letter from Neinheart," Aria told them.

Both Chiefs looked at Aria in astonishment, with Mihile accepting it gladly. Oz, on the other hand, seemed as if she wanted to interrogate Aria all over again. It was a good thing she was out of breath.

Upon Mihile's touch, the letter glowed brightly, turning into a piece of paper with some words scribbled onto it. Aria couldn't quite make out what it was. With only a glance, Mihile's expression had suddenly turned angry - very angry.

"Is this the reason why you attacked?" Mihile muttered, still staring at the paper. Turning to looking at Hilla, Mihile screamed. "You've killed thousands just so you could find this - this treasure that was hidden in Ellinia!?"

Hilla looked confused. "Just what are you rambling on about?"

Mihile frowned. "Aren't you here to take Ellinia's treasure? The _Book of Ancient_?"

Hilla rolled her eyes. "Come now, why would I want that old thing?" she questioned.

Suddenly, she cocked her head backwards, facing the starry night sky. Her eyes glowed a golden glow and she started humming. It was as if Hilla was in a trance.

Aria wondered what the sorceress was doing. From the looks of it, Mihile and Oz were just as confused. Hilla was probably giving orders to some dead guy or something but Aria suspected it to be much more sinister. Perhaps Hilla herself was receiving an order...

Hilla stopped as abruptly as she started. Slowly turning to look at them, Hilla sneered. "Sadly, my time here is up. So allow me to explain why I bothered attacking in the first place."

Aria could tell that Mihile had flinched. Probably due to anger - or maybe fear.

"Everything has a purpose in life, you see," Hilla started. "Sadly, the dead has no purpose except to serve me."

"Then what is _your_ purpose here?" Oz demanded. "Why do you kill?"

Hilla sneered at Oz. "Patience is the key to victory, my dear. You want to know why I attacked? Why I killed? The answer is simple really - all for the sake of my master."

Mihile rubbed his shoulder pensively. "The Black Mage. He's your master, isn't he?"

"Correct," Hilla laughed. "You see, my master wants me to deliver a message to that emperor you love so much."

Mihile poised himself defensively. "Don't you dare touch him!"

The sorceress laughed mockingly. "Tell him to hand Ereve over to the Black Mage-"

"Never."

"Then he'll die," Hilla said simply. "The deal is simple. If Ereve goes to the Black Mage, then perhaps the Black Mage would change his mind and spare his life instead."

"Go back and tell the Black Mage that the whole of Ereve would be coming for him," Mihile warned.

Shaking her head in disappointment, Hilla raised her palm. Pointing her arm at Mihile, a sudden burst of electrical sparks seemed to be generating around her. The sorceress smiled wickedly. "And just to make sure I get your emperor's attention..."

At once, black lightning came blasting from Hilla's palm. It drove through Mihile's suit of armor, piercing his stomach and leaving a hole in the process. Mihile crumpled to the ground.

"Consider this a gift from my master, to yours," Hilla laughed as she turned and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Aria froze. It was as if time had stopped. As if she couldn't hear nor see anything but Mihile's charred body - all covered in blood. That sight alone was enough to make her throw up. Aria didn't know if he was alive or - or _not alive_. Only the sound of Oz crying had managed to snap her back to reality. Oz was hysterically trying to cover up the wound with a piece of cloth that she had torn from her robe.

Aria had to help. Instinctively, she took her gloves off. Kneeling besides Oz, she pressed onto the wound and concentrated. Her hands felt warm and glowed brightly. Aria felt sick but she was sure that her magic was working. Slowly but surely, flesh had started regenerating in and around the open wound. If it weren't for Aria's lack of stamina, she would have probably been able to successfully heal Mihile.

Gasping, Aria turned away, pulling her hands with her. "This is as much as I can go. I can't cover the wound completely. You'll have to find a priest."

Oz waved her hands up frantically. "You've gotta be kidding me. The wound is still wide open! And aren't you a priest? Why can't you finish healing?"

"That's because she isn't," a voice called out from behind Aria and Oz. Leaning onto his staff, the old magician Grendel - the one whom Aria thought was injured - seemed to be just fine as he moved closer towards Mihile. Raising his staff, he gently tapped the wound. Immediately, the wound closed up and vanished. No scars or blood or whatsoever.

Aria gaped at the sight. She was pretty sure that Oz was too. Turning to look at Grendel, Aria stared in awe.

Grendel smiled cheekily. "There's no need for applause. I do these kind of things everyday after all."

"Thank you so much," Oz sincerely said. "Mihile's going to be alright, I hope?"

Grendel frowned, moving an arm up to stroke his long beard. "Well, he should be able to function normally again after a few days but it doesn't mean that he's completely healed. Magic can't heal everything, you know."

Oz sighed. "As long as he's fine then..."

"But you..." Grendel trailed off as he turned to look at Aria, "that magic you used was exactly like that of a priest. How were you able to replicate it? If it weren't for your initial healing on this man, then he would have already been dead by the time I started healing him. So tell me, who are you? A priest?"

Then Grendel gazed more intently at Aria. "Or are you just a _thief_?"

"Yeah," Oz said suddenly, staring suspiciously at Aria. "Hilla said that you were a thief. And the fact that Nineheart's letter was in your possession? You stole it, didn't you? You may have saved Mihile, but you came here with the wrong intentions. I'm not thanking someone like you."

Aria chuckled. She was used to this kind of treatment. Whether or not she does something good - since her status was that of a thief - no one would ever give her any recognition of it. In fact, it was stupid of her for even trying to help in the first place.

"Even Hilla got it right..." Aria began. "I'm not just a thief. I'm Aria, the _master _thief. Remember that."

Turning away, Aria enshrouded herself in a cloud of cards and disappeared from sight.

* * *

Aria walked gloomily across the metallic polished surface of the Lumiere. For some reasons, Aria felt hurt. She also felt as if she had wasted her time on something ridiculous. Walking towards the Lumiere's main entrance, she stopped to admire the sky, a full moon tonight.

It was a habit of Aria's to stare at the moon when she felt sad - and disturbed at that. All the blood, gore and death that she had experienced was starting to get to the thief. But the sight of the ever beautiful moon would always cheer her up. Satisfied, she proceeded in pushing open the gold metallic doors. A breeze of cold air came gushing out. She was immediately greeted by the sight of her butler, patiently waiting for her return. The old man wore his usual classy suit, and had his grey hair pushed backwards. Scanning Aria from top to bottom, his subtle features became more abrupt.

"Welcome back Master Aria," the butler greeted. He scratched his well-shaved chin while moving an arm up to touch his hair, his visage apparently perplexed. "Did you not steal anything this time?"

"Does it matter?"

"Why, we should have a party master. It's a new personal record!"

"Save it Gaston, I'm not in the mood," Aria muttered. "I had a rough night."

She walked right past the butler, slowly increasing her pace. She wanted to find Renault and give him a piece of her mind for the wrong tip-off. Right behind her, Gaston followed steadily.

"Renault!" Aria called out as she slammed open the doors to the Pilot House. She saw that the pilot was busy reading his daily newspaper while puffing from his usual lighted pipe. He took his hat off when he saw Aria, calmly adjusting his rough black hair. Rubbing his moustache, he stood up - showing his larger, more muscular build.

"Aria!" Renault gleefully cried in unison. Then he paused, focusing more on Aria's hands. Frowning, Renault arched his eyebrows. "I see you haven't got anything to show. Ellinia too tough for you?"

Aria twitched an eye, clearly annoyed. "Of course not! Ellinia? Tough? Those two words should never be put in the same sentence."

"Then what was the problem?" Gaston asked.

"Yeah good question," Aria started. "Everything was going fine until an _army of skeletons_ appeared," Aria deadpanned, "and started killing everyone in sight! There was a war going on Renault, _a war_! And I was caught in between-"

Renault's eye's widened. "Wait. What? A war you say?"

"Yeah! I could've died down there!"

"But couldn't you just teleport yourself back here...?"

Aria groaned in frustration. Reaching for the nearest sofa, she laid her body down gently while resting her head on a pillow. "I'm tired Renault," Aria said monotonously. "Gaston, could you get me a cup of tea?"

"Of course," the butler replied, already turning to leave.

Renault sat on the couch opposite to Aria. "Okay, look, sorry things didn't quite work out but how could I have known that there was going to be a war?"

"And let me guess, you probably also didn't know that Ellinia's treasure was just a book?"

Renault looked stunned for a moment. "Wait. Was it?"

Aria sighed. "Leave me alone, man. It's been a long night, I just want to go to sleep."

"No. Wait. Aria, just a moment. Have you heard about-"

"No way am I going to listen to any more of your crazy tip-offs..." Aria interrupted as she proceeded to cover her ears.

"The Skaia," Renault managed to finish. "Have you heard about the Skaia?"

Aria pondered about it for a moment, before slowly turning to look at the pilot. "What is the Skaia?"

"I thought you'd never ask," Renault grinned cheekily.


End file.
